The present invention relates to systems and methods for making imprints in sand, snow, mud, or other impressionable surfaces. More specifically, the invention relates to systems and methods for making commercial advertising imprints by a vehicle.
It has been noted in the prior art that imprints left in sand, snow, or road surface by vehicle wheels may be used to advertise commercial goods. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 1,571,248 teaches that a wheel may be custom molded to include words or marks in minor image (i.e., negative image) such as “Coca Cola” or other trademarks or forms of communication with a reader (collectively referred to herein as a “mark”). Then, upon mounting the wheel upon a vehicle, movement of the vehicle on sand or snow or other similar impressionable surfaces will leave positive image impressions of the mark on that surface. This action has the useful effect of temporary advertisement or communication with members of the public who may walk along the same road, beach, or ski slope and who will inevitably see the marks before they are eroded by the elements.
It has become increasingly understood in recent years that, to be effective, advertising should be targeted at a select audience of consumers who are most likely to purchase the goods on offer. One example of such advertising may be witnessed at a beach, where light aircraft are used to pull pendants behind the aircraft bearing advertising targeted at the throng below on the beach, for goods and services such as alcohol, local accommodation, restaurants, and the like. Under ordinary circumstances, it would be useful to combine such airborne advertising with imprints in the sand made by vehicle wheels, more especially of the trucks and utility vehicles used by lifeguard and police vehicles which are legally permitted to drive on the beach at the same time as bathers are gathered on the beach. Such combination targeted advertising in these circumstances is considered to be highly effective.
However, drawbacks exist with the present type of system for leaving temporary marks upon a surface, in the manner described above, namely formed by a minor image of the mark molded into a wheel tread. First, if one wishes to change the mark, it is difficult to do so with ease in a short period of time: One is compelled to remove from the vehicle the wheel bearing one mark (in negative), and substitute it with another wheel bearing a different mark (in negative). This may require returning the vehicle to a garage, and cannot easily be done in the field. Second, another disadvantage is that molding a custom designed impression into a wheel is very expensive. A dedicated wheel mold must be constructed, and rubber or polymer must be poured into the mold to produce a wheel with a tread having a desired imprint, in negative, of a mark. Such operations cannot benefit from the economies of scale that mass produced wheels enjoy, resulting in a very expensive product. Having a plurality of different advertising marks would be even more expensive. Third, a wheel with a desired custom imprinted mark may have to be driven a long distance from a storage garage to the beach or other location where trademarks are required to be imprinted onto an impressionable surface. This gives rise to two separate additional problems. First, a custom made wheel with custom designed advertising imprints will not enjoy the same roadworthiness that a commercially produced wheel enjoys in terms of its ability to gain traction on a wet or slippery surface. Indeed, in many states it may be illegal to modify a wheel to include such a modification. Second, the wheel will, as all wheels do, tend to wear down over a lengthy journey, and along with it, the imprint will wear down too. As already discussed above, the cost of replacing a custom made wheel with an imprint is much more expensive than a mass produced wheel, and so the cost of maintaining the imprint will be excessive. These problems with the existing system and method have suppressed targeted advertising on beaches and ski slopes because the cost, complexity, and inconvenience of the system is great.
Accordingly, there exists a need in the art for a system and method for cheaply and rapidly enabling a vehicle with a wheel imprint for advertising and similar purposes. The present invention addresses these and other needs.